The new news 24 thread

[Cavcraft]

C U L8R Volvo. In a no real surprise move, it's now gone and I've taken a (recent) old flame in part-ex for it. Thank .you for 28 miles of absolute insanity, old Swede

[Cavcraft]

[Inspector Morose]

Just spied a 46000 mile engine and box from a BXTZD on 't bay for 100 quid. I think I know which car it's from (if it's true it's actually done 64000 miles). It's got a Bosch pump too. Should I?

[320touring]

Just spied a 46000 mile engine and box from a BXTZD on 't bay for 100 quid. I think I know which car it's from (if it's true it's actually done 64000 miles). It's got a Bosch pump too. Should I?

Yes!

 

 

Mystery of the missing parcel was resolved tonight- driver had dropped it off at a neighbour, and got them to sign for it with to the wrong address on the form.

 

at least the parts look right. Huzzah

[The Moog]

C U L8R Volvo. In a no real surprise move, it's now gone and I've taken a (recent) old flame in part-ex for it. Thank .you for 28 miles of absolute insanity, old Swede

Bugger... I was working out how i could convince my missus that the Volvo was a 405 in disguise...

 

It is on my top ten car to own list

[Gerald]

No chod, Just Mid '80's Cold war music...

 

[mat_the_cat]

I picked the right day to take off work to fell some trees for a mate! Scorchingly hot.

 

I brought this down to dispose of the branches:

 

 

Bx did well towing it, especially when I found out it weighed 1500 kg, not the 800 kg I had been told. Although it was the second least enjoyable trailer journey I'd been on, as it seemed someone had removed the spring from the overrun brake mechanism, as every time you slowed down there would be a bang and a jolt as the trailer shot forwards. At least no overheating despite mountain roads, and the AC was *very* welcome.

 

Chipper was a bit of a beast, and could apparently cope with 9" logs. Even this small one made a hell of a racket.

 

 

Managed 39 mpg on the 250 mile round trip, which I thought quite impressive

[dollywobbler]

Gorgeous sunny day, so took 2CV to the beach. Then enjoyed a delighful sunset roofback in the 2CV. Then enjoyed driving home from the pub at 1am roof back in the 2CV. Even when it started raining. Fabulous.

[STUNO]

 

I am hating winter here, 15 mins ago at my house

a perfect day!

[rml2345]

I KAN HAZ LIFTY TOOLZ!

 

 

From B&Q of all places. They should be ideal for doing more servicing and whatnot at home. The bottle jack is my first hydraulic lifting device and is GR11 compared to the standard Volvo jack so it might find its way into the boot. Quality looks good and they weren't too dear either.

[HMC]

Range rover currently sat in the MOT bay. A fail is almost certain on the sills........

 

We will see.

 

Some of the exhaust system must have disintegrated on the way, by the time I arrived it sounded like a can am racer

[xtriple]

I went to see a Honda Insight today at the main Honda dealer in downtown Newton Abbot.  I was intrigued by the car and after dithering for a fortnight (I'm bloody good at changing my mind/dithering/second guessing myself) I went...

 

I was NOT going to buy it, just have a test drive and a mooch around.

 

I pick it up next Wednesday!

 

I was really impressed with it: drives really well, dashboard is fookin' awesome ( I like gadgets and geegaws) and watching what was currently powering the car was quite addictive!  Don't like the gearbox much on the motorway - feels like the clutch is slipping when you boot it (it's meant to!) but put it in sport and use the paddles and it's GREAT. Even got the dashboard to turn green...

 

Got offered a really good deal on my Mazda, I've lost £500 on it in six months, but when you think I bought it from a Mazda main dealer and traded it to a Honda main dealer, I thought that was a result... and I kept the tax.

 

It had to be done: the dogs were/are trashing the interior, dog hair, slobber, and salt stains all over the inside and I was really struggling with getting in/out of it, and the manual box is, for me, a disaster - I stall it ten times a day and cock up gearchanges for a passtime.

 

Strangely, I will not be sad to see it go.

 

So now the next step on my return to the land of the living is to get somewhere decent to live. Somewhere with parking so I can have an 'interesting car as well, I really miss fiddling around with heaps and while I'm very limited in how much I can do in one go, a project that doesn't have to be relied upon for actual transport will be great to have again.

 

Sorry for dripping on... and on..... and on!

[anonymous user]

I initially thought you were talking about the original Insight, but having read it all, I now realise it is the new one

[xtriple]

Yes, new one.

 

It will be nice to NOT spend days and nights looking for a new car, petrol and auto seems to be bloody hard to get! Everything is chuffing diesel these days and I HATE new diesels....

 

Just insured it for £32 more than the MAZ, and while I've got the money in the bank I've just borrowed the difference between the Mazda nd the Honda from my Barclaycard, for ZERO percent! They kept sending me offers and I kept throwing them away, then actually read one and they were offering me 0% if I transferred into my bank account, very small fee for doing so, but 0% for a year gives me a profit. Oh, and while I was on the phone to Barclaycard, they put up my credit limit!

 

It's all got to go wrong at some point soon.....

 

As soon as I get somewhere to live, the chod bothering will begin.... I have NEVER only had one car before, it goes against the grain to do so!

[panhard65]

I talked my dad into a Honda Insight earlier this year. We went to the dealer to look at a Jazz but he preferred the Insight. I don't find it particularly exciting or anything but it is pleasant enough. It is an easy car to drive and being a Honda should be reliable. It is fun trying to drive it and keep it in the green. Expect at least 50 to the gallon and the engine is so quiet you will never notice when it is running. Enjoy !!

[richardmorris]

Stupendous thunderstorm last night - about 4hours of flashes and bangs with a bit of rain thrown in. I was standing in the doorway at about 3am looking out when one thunderbolt hit the field opposite. It made the floor shake! It seemed to hit a sheep feeder rather than a tree. Then another bolt hit Broadmoor watch tower which set the siren off for three hours!

[r.welfare]

I heard about that, apparently set it off at 430am. I used to study in Wokingham and the weekly Broadmoor alarm test, at 10am every Monday, was loud enough to interrupt our lessons even though it was several miles away.

[Richard]

the weekly Broadmoor alarm test, at 10am every Monday, was loud enough to interrupt our lessons even though it was several miles away.

 

Is that what they are on about in the second verse of this?

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nncWCvrWRrc

[cms206]

This weekend I shall mostly be driving... this.

 

Arses.

 

[Micrashed]

Lobbed the Mav on Autotrader for the bargain* price of £990 ONO.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201407185926929/postcode/?atcide=emc-cars-FTL002

[Herts van Rental]

With regard to the Honda Insight in an earlier post, just been reading Honda are discontinuing that car at the end of the 2014 Model Year due to poor sales.

I also read the older models have had their Battery Packs renewed 3 times under warranty in the US of A. at around 3 Grand a time.

 

JK.

[Angrydicky]

OMG NOT VW PINEAPPLE VANS SPLITSCREEN SWALLOWTAIL RATLOOK

 

 

The roofrack will actually serve a practical purpose, when I go round Wales in a few weeks time I plan to put the spare wheel on the roof to make more room in the boot for camping gear, tools and stuff. It's actually a 70's rather than a 50's rack, and started out life on my grandad's MK2 Escort estate in 1977. Despite this, I think it really suits the scruffy 'old boy workhorse' look of the car, so will probably be a permanent addition.

 

Don't worry, I won't be filling it full of pointless shit to try and look cool. 

[xtriple]

The battery packs are warranted for eight years so no worries for me there... yet! Had a pleasant chat with the service manager while I was there. He joined the company when he left school as a wrench and worked his way up. He reckoned that they had never changed a battery pack on any of the hybrids except for an early (99) insight, and only then 'cos Honda wanted the pack back for testing.

 

I went on a few of the American forums the other night, just looking around, as you do. The yanks seem to complain about everything from the fact it's not a sports car to the fact it's lightweight and feels it! There was quite a bit of good info on there to be honest (no alternator/starter motor on the hybrids) and a lot of info on hyper-miling, which I'm not interested in. I'll be happy if it does 40 to the gallon as I don't do many miles a day,

 

It's quite a funky looking thing from the front and inside but the side view is.... nondescript - could be a Pious or anything.

[Luckythirteen]

I KAN HAZ LIFTY TOOLZ!

 

From B&Q of all places. They should be ideal for doing more servicing and whatnot at home. The bottle jack is my first hydraulic lifting device and is GR11 compared to the standard Volvo jack so it might find its way into the boot. Quality looks good and they weren't too dear either.

Bottle jacks make handy rams for bending/spreading metal too, at a pinch.

[mrbenn]

I KAN HAZ LIFTY TOOLZ!

 

From B&Q of all places. <SNIP>

 

I had a look at that range of tools when I was in B&Q the other night. They looked good to me.

 

Incidentally, a 3/8" drive 8mm deep socket from Halfords was nearly £4, my local motor factor was £3.20, this new B&Q range had one at about 85p!

[xtriple]

The post above about Honda Hybrids having three new battery packs scared the poopers out of me (needed, been a bit 'bunged up' of late   )  so I've been reading all the American forums... apparently that quote is quite famous....

 

Not true, thank fook! Seems very few of the Honda Hybrids have had any problems with the battery packs but, the 12volt battery under the bonnet does fail with alarming regularity! When it does, you've lost the lot, which seems bloody stupid to me but apparently the 12V runs all the relays etc and with that flat, the car is fooked!

 

It's the same system as has been used since '99 with no problems. Reports of gen 1 Insights with 500K on the clock over there, still going strong. I really like the early Insights, maybe I'll become an eco-freak and buy one of them as well, then start wearing sandals made out of cannabis and hair shirts!

 

Imcidentally, if you put it in 'eco' mode you get a plant symbol on the  dash and if you are a good boy, you can get up to three plants. They look, for all the world, like a cannabis plant, not that I'd know what one looked like of course....       

[twosmoke300]

Id love a 99 insight , proper lightweight economy car

[Lord Sterling]

This weekend I shall mostly be driving... this.

Arses.

 

Whats the reason? I know you mentioned something along the lines of delivering it fae someone. Is this a new little sideline or a one-off job?

[vulgalour]

40mph on a 40mph road, good visibility, slightly damp conditions, man behind in a Vauxhall paying more attention to his phone call than his driving.  As a result I was paying more attention to both not getting run into and not breaking the speed limit and realised too late that I was barrelling towards an advised (with good reason) 15mph corner.

 

Somehow managed to make it around the corner, on my own side of the road, at 40mph.  Got a very vocal four wheel drift but managed to hold it together and come out the other side with a bit of a wiggle on.  A little bit of poo may have come out.  Did not want!

 

I did try and just slow down to make him go past me, but I was really genuinely concerned he couldn't see me and was going to run into me and on that stretch of road there simply wasn't anywhere to go but at least as fast as he was.  He didn't go around the corner at 40mph, but he did catch up with me shortly afterwards and continued to try and climb into the car!

 

Maybe he was just angry that he was driving a Vauxhall?

[dollywobbler]

Not done a fill-up, but the Maestro just about did 290 miles before I wimped out and put fuel in. I reckon that's still low 40s MPG. That'll do. Took it to the seaside today. I must say, it does just gewt on and do things.